Death crash ambulance driver 'didn't slow at red light'

An ambulance driver responding to a 999 call killed a motorist when he crashed into her car after crossing a red traffic light, a jury was told yesterday.

Ian Fitzgerald, 29, a trainee paramedic who had only recently completed an advanced driving test, failed to slow down as he approached the light, it was alleged.

He had been taught to treat a red light as the equivalent of a "give way" sign and should have given more regard to other road users. He denies causing death by dangerous driving.

His ambulance collided with the side of a Peugeot 206 driven by Rosemary Fenney, 40, a schoolteacher, who was crossing on a green light on the A4 between Newbury and Thatcham, Berks, last October. Mrs Fenney, from Newbury, was killed instantly.

Neil Moore, prosecuting at Reading Crown Court, said that Fitzgerald, from Trowbridge, Wilts, was arrested after an investigation by Thames Valley Police concluded that he had driven dangerously.

He said that witnesses would testify that Fitzgerald, employed by the Royal Berkshire Ambulance Service, approached the junction "at great speed, without slowing down at all, and without paying adequate attention to other vehicles".

Mr Moore said: "Statutes allow [ambulance] drivers in such cases to be exempt from red light restrictions but they are not allowed to proceed in such a manner that is likely to cause danger. A red light in these cases should be treated as a "give way" sign, and the defendant knew this from his advanced driving course."